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OSDH officials also report 23.3 percent of adults smoke, which comes out to 75,000 fewer people than in 2011.

Smoking is the leading cause of death in Oklahoma. It kills more people than alcohol, car accidents, suicide and murders combined. State health officials do not know the exact reasons for the improvement, but they know 34,000 people called the state’s tobacco-quit hotline in 2012. They also credit the fact that the number of people who say they have never lit up is now at 52%.

It is believed these are the adults who heard the dangers of smoking as children. State health officials are not ready to celebrate. They do believe Oklahomans need to improve on the amount of secondhand smoke children are exposed to.